Still truckin'

Not much has changed in the lives of Neil and Ellen, other than someone stole Neil's flip flops. Who steals stinky, squishy, dirty flip flops? I guess someone who has been barefoot for too long. Other than that, it seems to have warmed up a bit and there has been less rain lately (at least in our small van-loving-world).

This past Sunday, Neil and I spent the afternoon fixing up the van and using silicone to patch up a few holes that were letting in water. We think we did a good job only it hasn't rained heavily in the last few days. Previously, we had to cut out some of the carpet and carpet pad near the rear doors because of the hammering rain from nights prior; the carpet and pad were soaked, and as we removed them, they were still dripping water.

In addition to the leak repairs, Neil did some spray painting to the back door and I did some vacuuming on the inside: I vacuum the inside of the van by taking a stiff bristled brush, about six inches by three, and brush the length of the carpet out the rear doors. We also did a little air freshening by leaving the doors open while we worked and spraying Febreze--which by the way comes in handy when I am driving from one job to the next and my socks are not smelling so fresh. We probably have about three canisters of Febreze stashed between both cars.

There is quite a community at Haena Park. There is a central pavilion, basically an open-walled dining area or a concrete slab with three picnic tables and connected benches, a roof and (bless the lord) electrical sockets; usually one of the sockets is always in use by way of a coffee maker. The regulars of the park congregate there and drink their beers, smoke their weed, or cook for the community by using the numerous pots, pans, random dishes, that can be found at two sink stations at each side of the park. Some meals that I've witnessed (I don't really partake in them too much anymore because I think that's how I contracted the diarrhea monster) have been chicken, pot roast, pasta with meatballs, rice, cheezits, etc. Neil and I hook up our electric two-burner and make bread when we're starving and don't feel like making at trip to Costco or spending 3+ dollars on bread. Trust me, it's not worth it to spend anything less than $3 on bread if you are buying from a store because Neil did the other night and I can now say that I've had white bread that tasted like laundry detergent.

The other night Neil was making bread (flour + yeast + olive oil) and we were talking with two ladies who were regulars. One lady offered us her Salisbury steak & rice (I declined but my steel-stomached husband accepted) and the other lady offered us hot cocoa (I accepted without any hesitation). It just so happened that we had marshmallows--go figure.

So everyone pretty much is generous but there are a few who steal to feed their addictions. One of the local ladies, nicknamed "Mama D", who is the sweetest lady I've met in a long time, had $200 stolen from her fanny pack while she was cooking for the camp. Her daughter had sent her the money so she could buy a car to get more work; she cleans vacation rentals. Now she had to start all over. The lesson is, you can trust people, but not all the time. Neil and I have let our guard down in the past but we've quickly rebuilt it.

The other good thing about Haena is the giant avocado tree that we normally park the van by. The tree is heavy with avocados and if you hang around it for a minute, some will drop that you can retrieve and save until ripe.

Last night at the camp was okay. It didn't rain but apparently, a water pipe on the left side of the park had burst meaning we couldn't take showers at the shower enclosure. If you wanted to take a shower, our friend Aleki (al-ah-k-eye) told us, you had to drag the hose into the bathroom stall. No big deal we thought until we discovered that someone must have thrown up in the bathrooms or spilt sugar/sand mixture everywhere that drew an infestation of ants. My resourceful husband decided we could hook the hose to one of the sink stations and hose off in the river bed which was low enough to be almost dry. I decided to fight him every inch of the way because it was dark down there, probably muddy (it wasn't), and I had reasoned that I didn't stink so bad that I needed a shower since I had showered earlier that morning. So he had to drag me down there kicking and screaming and I resented him unnecessarily for the rest of the night. I did feel clean though as I went to sleep.

Right now I'm at the library in Kapa'a because the Princeville library was closed this morning. Earlier, Neil and I walked around The Princeville Hotel (4 or 5 star) in our dress up clothes because he was thinking about getting a job. He went in the back and I walked through the front, gleeful, because I knew no one in there could tell that I lived in a van. One of the hotel workers gave me a purple and white orchid to put behind my ear. I used the bathrooms on the 8th floor--a joy considering the insect infestation I had witnessed last night. You never realize how much you appreciate a bug-free toilet until you don't have one. After enjoying the bathroom, I went up to the front desk and asked for a band aid for my foot which the desk clerk happily gave me. Neil joined me later and we looked at the restaurant menus, daring ourselves to buy a flourless chocolate cake slice for $9.00 but deciding not to.

As we were leaving the hotel, the valet asked us not to walk on the driveway because it was not safe for us. We thanked him and then two other hotel workers greeted us warmly Aloha and told us to enjoy our day. It felt sneaky and delicious, and technically, we weren't harming anyone, only fooling ourselves for an hour. Neil and I figured we could probably get away with a week at a time before anyone figured out anything different about us. But we would probably be caught when the two of us scavenger-like-vannigans spyed someone's unfinished breakfast tray sitting outside his or her door and we would plop to the floor like hungry puppies, gobbling up half a waffle and pouring maple syrup directly down our throats.

Nevertheless, we managed to leave the hotel without lowering ourselves to the ground, got into our Hyundai, ate two granola bars, and drove back to reality.